The Frontrunner

McCain wins the Most Important State Ever. A humiliated (and relieved?) Rudy Giuliani, rumored to be stepping down and endorsing McCain tomorrow, is now quoting Teddy Roosevelt, and congratulating his competitors. Including Ron Paul: "He won the debates!"

The one thing we've learned tonight: There will never, ever, never, never, ever be another "late state strategy" in presidential politics again. At least until 2112.

UPDATE: Rudy's loser speech—filled with "self-government," school choice, broadsides against "the central government"—is better than anything I've heard from him all season. As was Fred Thompson's. Maybe when the rest of them lose they'll suddenly sound half-good, too? Certainly the still-ticking Romney sounds both horrid—"before they have babies they should get married"??—and kind of teary-eyed.

Anyway, while the corpse is still warm, enjoy one last time David Weigel's profile of Giuliani in our December issue.